The surname Carr is found in England, Scotland and Ireland. When found in England and Scotland it is a variant of Kerr which is a topographic name for someone who lived by a patch of wet ground overgrown with brushwood. When found in Ireland Carr is an anglicized form of the Gaelic name  Ó Carra meaning “descendant of Carra,” a byname meaning “spear.” The first written reference to the name is in 1200 when Osbert de Ker is recordedin the "Records of the Abbey of Rivaulx", Yorkshire. A notable bearer of the name is the noted 18th Century English architect John Carr. There are more than 115,000 people living in The United States today with the family name Carr.